"For I Know The Plans I Have For You," declares the LORD... (Jer 29:11) - Homeschool Blogger

Thursday Talkin' About Teenagers ~ Make A Joyful Noise Unto the LORD

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 18:54:00 -0600

"Got teens? You lucky dogs.
Spend time with them; enjoy them; listen to them; and love them.
They are the most incredible people, these emerging adults,
and they can become the best friends you'll ever have."
~Diana Waring, Reaping the Harvest. The Bounty of Abundant-Life Homeschooling~

For my friends outside of the USA, today is an ordinary day. But those of you who are here in America know that this is a special time...it's Thanksgiving! (I'm actually posting this on Wednesday evening, the day before Thanksgiving, since I"ll be really busy tomorrow!) So I wish you a most Happy Thanksgiving, as we celebrate and thank our mighty God for His provision!

One of the areas where I have NOT done so well in our homeschooling adventure has been in music. We've learned a lot about the classical composers, and about the way history affected what and how they wrote their music, and we've dabbled with the guitars, but neither of the boys really learned to read music or to sing in parts. We have lots of friends who do, and our church full of homeschool families mostly know how to sing in parts, too.

This year, the boys were invited by some good friends to sing a hymn with them for our annual Reformation Party, and they did. It was a couple of months of practicing that hymn, and they basically just sang the melody, but they did it! I was delighted!

Just after that party, they decided that they wanted to try singing with the "Young Adults Choir" at church which was just forming for the Christmas season (they go to a nursing home and sing, and then perform during worship service at church, too). "We should sing bass," they announced. What a wonderful idea! I approached the young woman (she's about 21 or 22) who leads the choir about the boys joining, and she was thrilled to have them...despite the knowledge that they really couldn't read music and had never done this kind of thing before! So they joined.

When I looked at the music they were performing, I was surprised to see pieces by John Rutter, and difficult Christmas music like, "Sing We Now of Christmas." Good grief, I struggled with the rhythms and notes of John Rutter, and I sight read music fairly well!

I attended a practice after church one afternoon, and watched as they stumbled through, knowing they were mostly mouthing the words because they were so lost! After practice, I asked Nathan (my 16 y.o.) if he felt like it was just going to be too hard to try and learn. "Mom, we've only had two practices. We'll get it!"

Ah, youth! I love their optimism! I was feeling defeated for them...but it was a wonderful reminder to me that just because I feel tired or defeated, they are often energized and excited about the challenge before them!

That evening, we sat down at the keyboard, and I played each piece (one note at a time...I do NOT play piano well, I took clarinet in school!) so they could try to practice. Oh, it wasn't pretty! But they are having a great time and have such a desire to sing and to minister with the choir, and I'm sure God finds it beautiful.

Once they were done, I decided to see if I could learn the alto part...just for fun. After a few minutes, Nathan came back into the living room. "The choir is a bit short on altos, mom..." Hmmm. I've never sung in a choir before...

You guessed it! My sweet teens talked their old mum into joining the group, and the director now calls it the "Any Age Choir," since I'm hardly in the "Young Adult" category! The boys and I have gotten together with some of their singing buddies (whose mom happens to be my buddy!) for an evening of pizza and practice. It's opened up a whole new area for us to share as a family. What a blessing!

Now It's Your Turn! Here's How:

Simply write a positive post about something (or things) that your homeschooling teenager has done which impressed you this week. Keep it focused on good/encouraging/growth-maturity-related things you've observed about them; lessons they've learned, or that you've learned through them.
Link back to me (Lori @ Plans4You) in your post somewhere, so your readers will know where to go to join Thursday TAT. If you'd like the link-button to put on your blog and/or at the top of your post, you can get it HERE.
Sign the Mister Linky below, giving the EXACT URL of your post.
(Example: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/plans4you/123456)
Be sure to leave me a comment, and then visit the other participant's blogs and leave them comments, too! I'll visit your blog once your link is posted!)

Weekly Wrapup...Busy Week, So I'll Be Short & Sweet!

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0600

Welcome to my "Weekly Wrapup" with Three Little Ladies :

We are rapidly advancing through the fall semester, and the end is finally in sight! The boys are delighted...things should lighten up a bit for them next semester! They have moved down to the local/township level in their American Government class. They still have a paper due each week for this course, and it's been a good thing, though more writing than they've had before. Bryan is almost done with Algebra 1, and we've decided that's all he'll do there. He'll start a 1 year computer programming course, likely in a week or two (that's when Alg. 1 is over for him), which he'll need to push through and finish by the end of summerand next year he'll do geometry. Nathan is almost at the end of Algebra 2, and he'll move on to geometry next, then into pre-calc and beyond. Yikes!

Last weekend, Kevin and I took Nathan to the Illinois Institute of Technology Campus open house and tour that was offered. It was pretty exciting, and he's really pumped now! It was a good thing, he's really working harder to finish this tough semester strong, now that there's a "picture" in his mind of the goal he's after!

I really need to push more on the "home ec for guys" stuff...laundry needs to improve in terms of self-sufficiency! But their cooking is not too bad!

That's all I have time for today...I told Carol that in a couple weeks, I should be back up to speed and do a better job with these wrapups!

God Bless, and thanks for stopping by. Be sure to join me on Thursdays for my new meme, "Thursday Talkin' About Teenagers," too!!!

Grab A "Thursday Talkin' About Teenagers" Button Here

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 00:28:00 -0600

You can use this Thursday Talkin' About Teenagers link button in a couple of ways:

1. Insert it at the top of your posts (like I have, above)

2. Place it in your sidebar so others know you are participating (mine is in my left-hand sidebar)

Use the following code, taking out all the asterisks * first:

<*br><*center><*a href="http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/plans4you">
<*img src="http://i807.photobucket.com/albums/yy360/kevloril/thursdaytatplans4you.jpg">
<*/a><*/center><*br/>

Thanks so much for joining Thursday Talkin' About Teenagers, I'm looking forward to reading your posts!

God Bless,

Lori @ Plans4You

New Meme! Thursday "Talkin' About Teenagers" is Here!

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 06:00:00 -0600

I'm so very excited to introduce what I hope will be a great experience for us! I've been thinking and praying about this one for a while, and it's finally time to share it with my bloggy friends. You'll be seeing this on my blog every Thursday, and I hope and pray that I'll be seeing it on your blogs, too! Here's how it will look:

Simply write a positive post about something (or things) that your homeschooling teenager has done which impressed you this week. Keep it focused on good/encouraging/growth-maturity-related things you've observed about them; lessons they've learned, or that you've learned through them.
Link back to me (Lori @ Plans4You) in your post somewhere, so your readers will know where to go to join Thursday TAT. If you'd like the link-button to put on your blog and/or at the top of your post, you can get it HERE.
Sign the Mister Linky below.
Be sure to leave me a comment, and then visit the other participant's blogs!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Things are moving at such a fast pace here, especially in our homeschooling and home training. My babies of yesteryear are young men who are rapidly approaching independence. I so love that opening Diana Waring quote, "Got Teens? You lucky dogs!!!" I agree with her heart and soul. I am so blessed to have teenagers in my life! There are so many "horror stories" out there about raising teenagers, but I want to use this weekly theme to encourage and uplift, to share the joys and out-and-out delights of parenting and homeschooling teenagers! I hope you'll share the fun alongside me!

Got teens? Keep your eyes and ears open for something you'd like to share in a blog post on Thursday, and then come on over and join me! Please tell your bloggy-friends about "Thursday Talkin' About Teenagers," so they can join, too! I look forward to reading your posts!

God Bless, and thanks for stopping by. Be sure to join me on Thursdays!!!

Awesome Unique Pumpkin Recipes!

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:07:00 -0600

(To Participate in Tightwad Tuesday, write your post and visit CanadaGirl's blog to add it to the list!)

I read Annie Kate's wonderful tips for microwaving pumpkins, but was concerned about the warning she posted about them potentially killing the microwave (by overheating it), so I poked around a little to find a safer alternative for mine. (I already replaced my microwave and my refrigerator this year plus have had repair bills on my dryer and my oven, so I'm NOT about to take any more chances, LOL!) If you have a larger pumpkin, this will be a safe alternative that won't overheat the m-wave.

I figured that it would be safer (and yes, take longer) and healthier to just steam-cook it in the oven. A Google search brought me to "SeasonalChef.com" where I found this wonderful tidbit taken from a book titled, "The Perfect Pumpkin," by Gail Damerow:

***

"The standard method of producing a puree is to boil chunks of pumpkin, peeled either before or after boiling. But that method results in some loss of flavor and nutrients. So Damerow proposes a better way, taking a cue from Native Americans, who cultivated pumpkins for 8,000 or 9,000 years before Columbus reached the New World. They would bury pumpkins whole in the hot ashes of a fire. You could do it that way yourself, or more conveniently, use an oven.

'Baking a whole pumpkin will give you drier meat, which saves you time simmering off liquid if your ultimate goal is to make a pie,' she explains.

To bake a pumpkin, stab it in at least six places to release steam. Place it in a pan with some water in the bottom and bake at 350 degrees until the pumpkin is soft enough that you can depress the shell with a poke of the finger. Then let it cool, remove the seeds and scrape out the soft flesh.

Damerow recommends making more puree than a recipe calls for so that you can enjoy some of it on the spot, straight and hot, with melted butter and perhaps a sprinkling of cinnamon."

***

I know to cook an acorn squash at 350 degrees would take an hour, so for a pumpkin, I imagine it wouldn't be much less, if not more.

Author Damerow's book also has recipes in it, three of which are given on the "Seasonal Chef" website. One is for Pickles, another is for Canned Pumpkin Bread...soooo cool, you bake the recipe in greased glass canning jars, then take a jar out of the oven, wipe down the rim, and quickly put on a lid and tighten the rim around it...it'll suck in and seal the lid, and then you store it with your other canned stuff! How cool is that???

And this one looked so different, I want to try it sooner as opposed to later:

This recipe is from the Stonycreek Farm in Noblesville, Indiana, home of a month-long Pumpkin Harvest Festival each October.

3 cups raw pumpkin, sliced
1/3 cup butter
2 eggs, beaten
¼ cup milk
1 tsp salt
dash cayenne
¼ tsp dry mustard
½ cup shredded Swiss cheese
Parmesan cheese

1. Saute the pumpkin in the butter until tender. Remove to a serving dish.

2. In remaining liquid in pan, combine the eggs, milk, spices, and Swiss cheese. Heat until the cheese melts.

3. Pour the cheese mix over pumpkin. Top with Parmesan.

Again, the website where I got all of this is "SeasonalChef.com" if you want to get the other two recipes! Yummy pumpkin!

God Bless

Lori

Cafes, Lattes, and the Like...

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:24:00 -0600

(To Participate in Tightwad Tuesday, write your post and visit CanadaGirl's blog to add it to the list!)

Mary, I LOVE the new graphic!!!

I am, at present, sitting in the college cafe, surrounded by laughing, chattering students, jazz music, and the smells of fresh roasted coffees wafting all around me. I am enjoying a tall half-caf coffee with blueberry flavor and cream...plenty of cream! It cost me only a little bit in change...that's all!

It's not because this is an inexpensive coffee shop...it's because I brewed the blueberry coffee, 1/2 regular, 1/2 decaf, at home before I left. I have a tall travel mug, which I like to fill up to the top and close off the lid so I don't drink it all in the car. Then, while Nathan is in his German class here at the college, I go to the cafe (I can get an internet connection there) and either blog, or do my Bible study, or lesson plans, if needed (though it's a bit noisy in here if I have to seriously concentrate, I am able to write even with lots of noise around me...it's not the best, but I can do it).

It's a wonderful way to enjoy the coffee shop atmosphere yet save the $4+ cost of a cup of java!

Have a blessed week!

Veteran's Day

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:07:00 -0600

(This is from my Company Front Porch blog section, "Homeschooling Through High School" ... thought I'd post it here at Plans4You, as well!)

Today's entry will be brief (perhaps a welcome alteration from my usual ramblings for some of you busy homeschool moms!). As always, the homeschool high school does not typically have a lot of "room" for "extra projects" or holiday crafts. So what to do about Veteran's Day when homeschooling through high school?

It is my personal opinion (and ONLY my personal opinion) that one of the greatest gifts this country can give to our veterans is to teach our children the history of our nation's battles. The very fact that the Korean War is nick-named "The Forgotton War" belies the lack of intentionality which most American's apply to their study of American history.

Philosopher, poet, literary and cultural critic George Santayana is known to have penned, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” In the grand scheme of world history, America is but a babe of a nation. In comparison with, say, Europe or Asia, we here in America really don't have that much history to remember! As I reflect upon Veteran's Day, I feel that we owe it to the brave men and women who have fought and/or died in service to this great nation of which we have been blessed to be a part, to teach our children their history, and to teach it to them well. I wish to require a deep consideration of history at this, the high school level. And, most importantly, to unfold our nation's history...our world's history...by looking at it from the overarching viewpoint and plan of the Author of human history. It is, afterall, HIS-story.

I have recommended it before, and I'll recommend it again: the best history curriculum for high school that I have come across is Diana Waring's "History ALIVE!" Beginning with Creation and ending with the VietNam War, the curriculum is a three year tour through the history of the world ALL presented in a format that is glued to the Guiding Hand of God as presented in the Bible. You and your students will learn to see His purpose in each and every event for achieving His desires for His people, all laid out in Scripture. In the process, you will cover history, literature, composition, geography, art and architecture...even cooking! Every learning style is accomodated with Diana's coursework, and the course is a dynamic learning experience.

Give a veteran an important gift during these important years in your homeschool. Give a veteran a young adult who comprehends the gift that our veterans have given us.

May God bless you and your homeschool this week!

Lori

Rise Up, O Men of God...

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 07:00:00 -0500

(To participate in "Tightwad Tuesday with Canadagirl," click on the graphic above or in my sidebar.)

It has been a rough few days...from previous posts and my whining on several C-boxes, you know that first my refrigerator stopped working; 2 or 3 days later, Sunday evening, my double-oven wouldn't work. I had a repairman out Monday...it turned out to be a self-cleaning feature, the locking latch, that was unknowingly shifted enough that it wouldn't allow the circuit to connect, so the oven wouldn't ignite...that's painful when you pay $129 to have someone slide a latch on the door over 3 inches to "repair the problem."

Two hours after the oven was back up and running, right before dinnertime, my kitchen sink backed up.

At this stage, it's almost comical to me. You see, I was supposed to host 40 people here for a Reformation Day Party Saturday (Oct. 31st)! I say that I "Was supposed to" because we've gone with the backup location, a community center room that God was sooooo good to impress upon me to reserve, just in case the group got too big for my house! The group isn't really too big, but the problems going on in my kitchen ARE! We're serving dinner to the group, so the situation is just impossible.

BUT...that's not my Tightwad Tuesday post for today. (There's nothing tightwadish about the $$$ that's just flown out of my house in the form of repair costs!) That's just the background to what I have!

That evening (Monday), after the oven repairman came over and my sink backed up, my dear friend, Nan, and her 4 teenage sons came over. It was the final "rehearsal" day for what we're calling "The Band of Brothers." This group is Bryan and Nathan, plus their good buddies, these 4 awesome brothers from our church, who are doing the presentation portion of our Reformation Party. Well, the other 4 guys are doing the presentation...they've invited Bryan and Nathan to join them in singing one of the hymns of the Reformation, "Rise Up O Men of God." They thought I was just taking photos of them singing...but I was sneaky, and video'd them! Got the last two verses:

As for the camo gear...we ran into the guys recently at a Hunting and Fishing Expo (a wonderful surprise!), and they said they found a guy at a booth selling old camo wear for a couple bucks! Bryan (closest on the right) already had camo jacket and pants, but Nathan (closest on the left, with the guitar) was holding out for a sale price...well, he found it! His camo jacket that he bought had some rips in the shoulder, so the man sold it to him for $1.00!!! They all bought camo jackets that day, and they come over for hymn practice wearing them. It's so funny, if you saw them hanging out somewhere, you'd wonder "what these kids in the camo gear are up to"...and then they start to sing Reformation hymns!

OK, so this isn't technically a true Tightwad Tuesday post...but I just wanted to share the video, and Nathan did find the jacket for a buck...

Have a wonderful week, and I'll post some pics and video of the Reformation Party in my Weekly Wrap-up on Sunday!

Blessings,

Lori

TELL ME This is just a dream...

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 19:16:00 -0500

So, as you now know, we came home from a wonderful trip to Harvest Home Farm last week Sunday, and within a few days found we had a "dead" refrigerator on our hands. The repairman came out and, for $230, fixed the "little button thingy that popped it's lid." No kidding...that's what he said! OK...well, the thing's running again. But it didn't feel too cold in there. Hmmmm...

I took my thermometer (instant read meat thermoometer from P. Chef...it always reads my room temps exactly on with what the thermostat says it is, and it goes down to zero degrees Fahrenhiet, so I figure it'll be accurate. I've checked over the last 48 hours (the repair guy said it can take up to 48 hours for the fridge to fully cool down), first with the fridge empty, so nothing is stealing heat. It reads 40 degrees. (Fridges need to be 32 to 40 degrees MAX in order to slow bacterial growth on food...so 40 degrees, with the cooling level set at max cold is NOT good. Then, I added some things like a bottle of milk and a carton of OJ, some applesauce, lettuce in the crisper. Very little stuff...everything's still in the spare fridge and in coolers with ice, which are on my kitchen floor now, nothing that would be a mojor heat-stealer. I leave that for 24 hours. Checked it today, it's 42 degrees in there.

HOORAY!!! I get a new fridge!!!

I've been wanting one for years now! So, I spend a nice afternoon online, looking at Sears.com for fridges that'll fit the space we have (it's an odd configuration...short but wide). Kevin (dh) left at 2pm for a business trip, he'll be home Wednesday evening. Saturday, we're having 40+ people here for a Reformation Day party...not a great time for the fridge to break down, but Sears is fast, and I should have the new one delivered and installed by Wednesday, so it'll be good to go by Thursday evening , I'm sure, to be loaded with stuff. Sound good?

Ooooooh, Nooooooo!

So, my mom and dad miss us (they live 15 min. away, but we've been gone weekends this month, so haven't gotten together much)...and with Kev gone, I thought, "come over for dinner Sunday evening." Sounds good, Mom says..."let me bring the dinner, scalloped potatoes and ham." Yummmmm! So, they're due to arrive at 4pm. At 3:45pm, she called and asked us to preheat the oven to 375 degrees, as the casserole will need about 30 minutes to finish cooking, and it'll be ready to eat around 4:45pm. No problem, we preheat, they arrive, casserole goes in the hot oven, and we settle down to chat.

15 minutes later, Mom goes to check on the casserole and to stab the potatoes to see how soft they are getting. "Um, Lori? Your oven isn't hot." What? It was hot when I put the dish in, I even burned my finger on the oven rack as I was sliding the pan in. "Well, I can put my hand on the oven rack now, and it's barely warm any more."

I went over to the oven and checked it, and, sure enough, it was cooling down. The control was set at 375. I turned it off and back on...nothing. It's a gas oven (double oven, this was the top one), so we should here the gas turn on and the flame light...it didn't. I turned it off, and tried the lower oven...nothing. The preheat lights never came on.

Down to the fuse box in the basement to check there...nope, all is well. I tuned them off and back on, just for good measure, but nothing changed. The stove works and lights, so there's not an issue with the gas, and the fan and the oven lights and stovetop light are all working, so it's not a lack of power. Something happened that doused the flame in the ovens, and they won't go back on. We didn't do anything, just put in a casserole into a seemingly healthy, preheated oven!

So, one month ago I paid the Sears guys $200 to fix my dryer, which wouldn't heat. On Friday, I paid the Sears guy $230 to fix a button thingy that made my fridge cold, but not cold enough. I just made and appointment for the Sears guy to come out tomorrow (Monday) to look at why my oven won't heat...with the starting cost at $120 for the visit and all labor...but parts and "incidentals" are extra. What are "incidentals?" I'm almost afraid to find out.

Welcome back home...I want to pack up my suitcases and the coolers and head back up to a cabin in Wisconsin. *Sigh*

God Bless, and thank you for stopping by!

Well, At Least It's CLEAN...g r r r r r r r r r...

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 05:00:00 -0500

(To join Friday Show n Tell with Canadagirl, click on the graphic above
or link to Canadagirl's blog from my "Friends" Section)

I've had a crummy-sort-of evening. It's Thursday, about 10:30pm, and I just finished the job pictured below...so I thought I'd post it now for my Friday S&T! I hadn't planned on cleaning out my refrigerator and freezer tonight. Actually, I was looking forward to finally making my applesauce before the apples start going soft. But the fridge got warm during the day, and by evening we realized it when we poured a glass of congealed milk that had been fine this morning. I am hoping and praying that the machine is just dead...I really don't like my fridge! But I know, I know, and I am grateful to even have a fridge! And now I have a sparkly clean non-working fridge!

Freezer:

Fridge:

The Sears repairman comes tomorrow afternoon, so I get to sit home from noon to possibly 5pm until he arrives. Actually, sitting at home doesn't sound too bad right now! Especially the sitting part! (My back hurts...I hate washing refrigerators!)

I'll probably work on my revived skill of knitting...thanks, Mary! (That would be Canada Girl Mary...) I'm making myself a scarf. I got goofed up and forgot, shortly after starting, whether I was knitting or purling, so my stitches reversed a bit, but I like how it looks on the end, so I'll just do it again when I finally get to the other end, so it'll match! It is relaxing to knit, but sometimes makes me sleepy, it's rather hypnotic!

Have a wonderful weekend, thank you for stopping by! Be sure to leave a comment, so I can visit YOU next! God bless you!

~Lori

"I Wish I Could Go To A Farm" (Part 6 of 6...so far)

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 10:22:00 -0500

Waiting Upon the Lord...A Young Man with a Big Dream

Philippians 1:6 ~ "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus."

This verse refers to the completion, at the return of Christ, of the spiritual work that He began in us...we are, in this life on earth, a constant "work in progress." If we yield our lives to His will, and follow His path, He will carry on the work of the Master Potter upon our "lump of clay lives." Of course, our work and vocations are merely a part of the way that God molds and uses us to share the Gospel of Faith, and the Gospel of the Kingdom. He gives us a path to follow, if we have hearts attuned to His leading, and those paths are to satisfy His purposes. For Bryan, this seems - more and more each day - to be a path that includes farming and sheep.

We had a wonderful visit to the Harvest Home Farm in Whitehall, Wisconsin, the weekend of
October 9.

We left Chicagoland on Friday late morning, and arrived "Up North" in the beautiful hills of Mississippi River Country, southwestern Wisconsin, around dinnertime. Our accomodation for the weekend was a lovely little guest cottage called the "Granary Guesthouse." (That's our little station wagon...the guest quarters are upstairs, while the lower level is used for storage at this time.)

It has a bedroom with a queen bed, plus a double futon. We brought along a cot for Nathan to sleep on, as he and Bryan can no longer fit in a full size bed together! Here are the boys during our evening of "Settlers of Catan" playing...the best game in the world!

Part of the reason for our visit (the main part!) was to hopefully initiate a discussion with the folks who run Harvest Home Farm about the possibility of Bryan doing an old-fashioned apprenticeship there. We had met with our pastor, Gary, and his wife the week prior to our trip, to ask their counsel about it (they are old friends with one of the founders of the Farm), as they know of Bryan's desire to become a sheep farmer. Gary indicated that he had not mentioned anything to them about Bryan or us, so we knew that we would be "hitting them blind" with this idea. His advice was just to go and "feel the situation out, see how it goes."

I'm a pretty spontaneous person when the situation arises...spontaneously. But I do NOT like being "spontaneous" when I have to plan to be! I like to know things will procede in advance, to have a plan in mind. So this was not what I had hoped for. But, over the years, I have learned that God is wayyyy better at handling Bryan's life than I am! And so, I agreed with Him that I would trust, and wait.

I asked Him to show us when the time was right to discuss an apprenticeship, if it was right, by having THEM bring it up, by having THEM lead us into the conversation. Perhaps they would ask for some help with chores while we were there, and they'd see how capable Bryan is, and mention how nice it would be to have someone who could help with the work. We prayed, and asked many of you, our "bloggy-friends," to pray during the week before our trip that God would go before us, and prepare their hearts; that He would make them feel and sense a great need for help, and then see that Bryan would be just the right one to meet that need.

Upon arrival, we were greeted by 5 dogs (border collies plus one lab) and several sweet barn kitties. These two agreed to pose and smile for us when we promised they'd be famous in bloggy-land:

Mike and Becky, homeschooling parents of 4 children ages 14 down to 4, live on and "run" the farm. They have great hearts for ministry, and Becky has a lovely desire to exercise what seems to be a gift of hospitality...but the work of the farm keeps them so busy, it can be difficult. Harvest Home Farm is, first and foremost, a place of ministry. Visitors to the farm get to connect with the land, the animals, and farm-life, of course, but the primary goal is to connect them with their Creator and Savior, Jesus Christ, through the many Scriptural analogies to sheep, shepherds, and the agrarian life. It is a fantastic place, with a fantastic story to go with it. (Do take a moment to take the link I've provided on the right side of my blog and visit Harvest Home Farm after you finish here!)

Our first few moments with Mike made it clear that he had no idea what had brought us to the Farm for the weekend. We were, as far as he knew, just a family from Chicagoland, visiting the Farm for a nice weekend get-away. And that was true! His father-in-law, Larry Guthrie (remember him from Part 5 of this tale?), and his wife were both out of town. Larry had been our "connection" to Harvest Home Farm, and was one of the "founders" of the place and its ministry. Given this set of circumstances, the realization that we would, in all likelihood, not be discussing a possible apprenticeship for Bryan was a bit of a disappointment, but at least we knew it from the outset. OK, Lord...You know absolutely best! We will wait, and just have this wonderful weeknd of refreshment, and a chance to simply observe, be a blessing to them with our work, if they need help, and get to know one another better. Thank you for making it so clear right away! We do not need to wait and wonder!

The next day, Saturday, dawned clear and CRISP. That's COLD! At least the forecast snow had held off; we were expecting 2 inches of the stuff, and were NOT mentally prepared for it! We were physically prepared, with plenty of warm coats, hats, mittens, and boots. Mike has lots of mowed paths which guests can follow to take wonderful hikes up...up...UP to the top of the ridge for spectacular views of the valley and the farm! The first photo below is almost all the way up, but not quite! The last one is all the way up:

A turn to the left takes you around to the group camp area, complete with campfire ring and volleyball nets, and there is a path down to a lovely pond for fishing:

A turn to the right (from the top of the ridge) takes you around and back down...and along the way you pass a lovely bluff where they've set up a trap-shooting range,

and then you go down, down, DOWN to the lovely pastures area:

If you're getting the idea in your head that "this place is BEAUTIFUL!"...I want to tell you that the photos don't even tell it all. Harvest Home Farm is a place that displays the majesty of the Creator. It is just breathtaking!

After the wonderful hiking, we helped Mike and Becky unload some hay bales into the barn. Becky and I had a little time to chat about the Farm and her life on it, and what they love about it. I bit my tongue as she told me about the dreams that she had to serve their future guests (once they get guest cabins built) and the lovely hospitality touches she'd like to put in practice (once they get a commercial kitchen built, but they have to move the barn first) and the yarn she'd love to spin from the wool they shear (once she has time, which seems as though it's years away)...these things that God has gifted her to do and laid upon her heart, but that they just can't because it's all they can do to keep the farm-work up and keep the grounds cleared and the sheep fed and the dogs trained all while homeschooling the kids...

I'll tell you what, I was about to bust right out of my skin, I wanted to cry out, "We can help! We can help! Our son wants to work with you! To work the farm with you!" But, as I said, I bit my tongue. My mind was carrying on a second conversation, though, along with my heart..."Oh, Lord, THANK YOU! THANK YOU! I know we need to wait until YOU direct us to talk apprenticing Bryan here, but You have answered our prayers by showing us that they DO have a need for the kind of help that Bryan can give them!" I was so grateful and excited, because now, even though we were to wait, we were waiting with great hope!

All too soon, it was time to pack up most of our things on Saturday night, since we would be leaving Sunday, right after attending church with Mike and Becky. Mike stopped by just before dinner and told us that his father-in-law had called, and was back in town, and really wanted to have a chance to chat with us before we left. He'd join us at church, and perhaps we could have coffee afterward...that sounded just wonderful to us (who wouldn't want a latte after church??!). We packed up everything that we wouldn't need the next morning, and snuggled in for a good night's rest.

Worship was warm and intimate at the small Wisconsin church. Afterward, Larry found us, and we headed off to the coffee shop. We talked about the history of the Farm, their search for it, their plans for the ministry there. We talked about our pastor, Larry's good friend, and how we came to attend the church here in Chicagoland. We talked about homeschooling. And then, he looked at Bryan, and said something like, "you know, by your age a young man should have a direction in his life...he should set a goal. Do you know what you'd like to do?" "Well, yes...I want to be a farmer." "Ah-hah! What kind of farmer?" "A sheep-farmer. I want to raise grassfed lamb." "And where would you like to do this? Do you know where you want to live?" Bryan, the grin he had tried to suppress taking over his face, replied, "well, HERE!! Southwestern Wisconsin!" "Really? Well, that's terrific!"

He turned to me and Kevin..."So, what are your plans to help Bryan with all of this?" Stunned, we gave him the VERY-condensed version of Bryan's story, from the visit to the County Fair, the 4-H Club, the Montessori-farm in Amish Ohio, to Kline Creek Farm and the sheep-shearing school.

"Very good," he said. And then, the real stunner..."So, what now? WHAT'S THE NEXT STEP?" I had to pick my jaw up off the floor as Kevin finally spoke that which had literally been coaxed out of him: "well, we're thinking an apprenticeship would be the best thing." It was as though he had been expecting it all along! Had our pastor back home made a phone call to his friend, and given him a "head's up?" Had he remembered, from our first meeting at our church when he was a guest-preacher, Bryan's interest in sheep-farming, and put 2-and-2 together? God's provision, however it happened, in answer to prayer, was unmistakable. We had asked Him to direct the timing of the conversation by having the HHF people bring it up if we were to even mention it. Our pastor back home was not aware of that prayer we had prayed. So if he had spoken to his friend, it was by God's leading, rather than ours! What a wonderful answer to that prayer!

We chatted for a while about the things that they were praying for the opportunity to do at the Farm, their need for help (volunteer help, not paid help), the obstacles they were facing in terms of funding and building codes and where to house an apprentice (another obstacle). Then, he looked up at Bryan. "Bryan, I think I see a match here. It's a ways off yet [because of the aforementioned obstacles], but let's be in prayer about the timing, and we'll keep in touch. You have some skills that we could really use, and I want to hear more about the place you volunteer, and the programs you're doing out there."

And so, here we are. Wow. What a surprise, what a blessing, what a confirmation! We are just today putting together a packet of information to send them...a "resume" of sorts, of Bryan's experience, so they can see what he's done that would be helpful to them in terms of skills he already has; a letter of intent on our part of what we are hoping for in terms of the apprenticeship, and our financial intentions (we will pay them to apprentice Bryan); and a copy of parts 1-5 of "I Wish I Could Go To A Farm," so they can read for themselves the wonderful journey that God has ordained for us to be on in all of this. We'll also be sending along a list of the remaining studies and experiences that we have been led to seek for Bryan before he strikes out on his own (things like taking some mechanics/engine-repair classes at the community college...a furniture-making course in Texas that teaches the skill using only hand tools, not expensive power tools that cost a fortune and lead to debt...and, Lord-willing, an Associates degree in Agriculture from a nearby junior college). Some of these things may begin to happen this spring, if an apprenticeship needs to wait for a while. It may be that he will learn skills very useful to HHF, so God wants him to do these things first. Larry, Mike, and the Lord will direct our steps from here.

Bryan, Kevin, and I will continue to wait, to wait upon the Lord, who knows the plans He has for Bryan. We wait in joyful expectation, and rest in the knowledge that, even if nothing comes of this in the end, He is in complete control, and will accomplish His will in the life of our son. "My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from Him." ~ Psalm 62:5

God Bless you,
Lori ...

Friday Show-n-Tell with CanadaGirl ~ B-day at the Swimmin' Hole

Fri, 2 Oct 2009 16:52:00 -0500

(To join Friday Show n Tell with Canadagirl, click on the graphic above
or link to Canadagirl's blog from my "Friends" Section)

UPDATE: I've posted the video of the boys in that "Vortex Tornado" water slide at the end of this!

This is from mid-September, it's just taken me this long to post it! We went an hour north to "Key Lime Cove" indoor water park for Nathan's 16th bday weekend. What a blast! It was so good to just be relaxed, juvenile, silly, and full of non-stop smiles for the weekend! We needed it very badly.

Upon arrival, we had a Happy 16th Birthday dinner, first. L to R are Nathan, dh Kevin, and Bryan

Me and Nathan...

Then into the water park! All very Caribbean-themed! This was more the "kiddie" area, but we had fun in it anyway! Nathan, Bryan, and Kevin are standing on the bridge (to the right, not sure who the guy at their left is!) squirting people with water as they come out the bottom of the water slides. There were also buckets that filled with water that you could dump on people below. The big pineapple up top dumped its load every 15 minutes or so.

Nathan coming down the slide...notice Dad behind the orange railing...getting ready to dump a bucket of water on Nathan...

Bryan on the "lazy river..."

We climbed these stairs a hundred times to get up to the BIG water slides and the "Vortex Tornado."

This was the funniest thing...if you ever wondered what it would be like to watch a person be flushed down a toilet, this is it. I have to say, though, it was a BLAST!!! I have a video of the boys going down it...I have to learn how to post that to YouTube, and then I'll put it in here. In the meantime, here are photos...keep checking back for the updated one with the video! (I'll add a note at the TOP of this post.) This is Bryan going around the "bowl" and finally being flushed down the "trap!"

Last, a view from above the "Vortex Tornado" to the wave pool (waves off at the moment) where the "lazy river" begins.

Thanks for stopping by...leave a note so I know you've been here, and so I can visit you, too, if I haven't already!

God Bless,
Lori

Saving on Hotels and Travel

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 20:23:00 -0500

(To participate in "Tightwad Tuesday with Canadagirl," click on the graphic above or in my sidebar.)

Mary (aka CanadaGirl) asked if anyone had tips on saving money at hotels while travelling besides getting the hotels that offer free continental breakfasts. we do a lot of road-tripping and travelling, and have found a couple of things that work consistently for us:

#1. When I go to book a hotel, I always look to see if I get a fridge and microwave in the room. The fridge isn't so important, as we can simply bring up our Coleman cooler. But the microwave is nice...I can get frozen "TV" dinners, or make a dish that can be brought in the cooler, and microwave it for dinner. I would rather spend $20 extra per night on the room than pay $60 for dinner out.

#2. If there's one available where I'm travelling, I try to book a room in one of the "extended stay" hotels...the ones with kitchenettes in them, especially if I'm staying more than one night. Again, it may be $20 to $30 more per night than the Motel 6...but if we have to eat out, lunch and dinner, we'll spend way more than that. Bring a loaf of bread, jars of PB&J, or tortillas, mayo, lunchmeat/cheese and some prewashed lettuce leaves, some fruit, a bag of chips, and your water bottles, and you've got lunches.

No kidding, we show up with BAGS AND BAGS of groceries when we travel!

#3. I ALWAYS travel with my crockpot! Make the food for it in advance, freeze it if you won't need it for a couple of days, and it'll be good in the cooler. Baggie all spices needed. Bring plastic plates, forks, knives, spoons, and cups, and a little bit of dish soap. Use a washcloth from the hotel room to wash, but if you have something that would stain it, bring your own from home. Dressers with a towel laid out make fine dryer racks!

#4. We also bring snack foods in the bags and cooler...yogurt (the tubes of yogurt are best...Gogurt, they're called), cookies/granola bars, and cereal and milk for breakfast.

There is just no reason, if you're on a tight budget, to think you can't cook in a hotel room! Just be safe, NO electric frypans or gas stoves (you're not camping). Call the hotel and ask them to put a microwave in your room, or if one is available somewhere for guest use. And be sure to calculate the cost of a lower price hotel room with NO cooking facility requiring eating out vs. a slightly higher price room where you can cook.

God Bless,

Lori

The New Addition...

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 22:22:00 -0500

(To participate in "Tightwad Tuesday with Canadagirl," click on the graphic above or in my sidebar.)

My newest addition should save me money in the long run (I can make and freeze my own cooked chicken/turkey much more easily). My newest addition should make meals more nutritious by cutting down on chemical-laden processed food (no more canned broth if I have frozen chicken stock tucked away!). My newest addition should bring delicious aromas to my kitchen that will whet our appetites hours before the meal is served (mmmmm...tell me that homemade chicken soup isn't as good as canned...I dare you!). My newest addition is a fun color, and it makes me cheery (who can resist bright red?).

Meet my newest addition: my Tramontina 12 Qt. stock-pot!

All these years of cooking, and I've never had a stock pot. But my kitchen is turning over a new leaf, finally!!! I have 3 chickens (organic) in my fridge, which need to be cooked tomorrow (along with some carrots, celery, and onions) and then shredded for enchiladas and chopped for whatever I can come up with another time, plus chunked for a chicken pot pie. I have a large soup/stew kettle, but it is short and fat, not tall and skinny. So it's been very hard for me to cook a whole chicken and make stock, as I can never keep the bird covered with water w/o it boiling over and making a major mess. The pot was a $34.99 investment (not too bad, considering that I live in the land of "Williams Sonoma" and "Sur Le Table" stores, with their $250-$500 stockpots; yeesh).

Groceries out here in Chicagoland are outrageously priced, as well. I read so many blog posts from people who live out in the country, grow much of their own food/produce, and have a harvest to "put up." That's such a blessing! I know it's a TON of work, but what a blessing. What a blessing. Don't miss out on that fact, you homesteaders! Well, at least I have my raspberry bushes! And I have my $11 organic chickens from Meijer's. And I have my stockpot...YAY! Enchiladas tomorrow for dinner (make one to eat and another one to freeze), chicken pot pie on Thursday (the recipe is from Colonial Williamsburg...it's fantastic!).

I'm taking the advice of doing a better job of using what I have in the house as I plan my meals now. I'm checking my recipes for those that use up the big bag of potatoes, so I don't throw the last 2 or 3 out. I check the pantry, and bring the older cans of chopped tomatoes up in front, so I don't think I'm out and buy more needlessly. I found 2 cans of cream of potato soup hiding in the back of the pantry this morning! I have one recipe that calls for them, so I'll be sure to make it next week.

One really nice thing about this is that my fridge isn't so crammed up, since I'm really using up all the foodstuffs in it more efficiently. We're just a family of 4, and only 3 of us home at lunchtime, so we tend to eat leftover dinner for lunch. If there isn't any, we'll make quesadillas (I always stock tortillas and cheese) or PB&J sandwiches (I have lots of blueberry freezer jam now!). Hopefully all this will help my grocery budget go down and the quality of our food go up. A good trade!

God Bless,

Lori

Weekly Wrap Up with Three Little Ladies

Sun, 20 Sep 2009 21:09:00 -0500

This won't be as long and detailed as many WWU's are...but I wanted to get it done (a promise to myself and to being a part of this!).

We've had a really intense week; my kiddos are learning to manage/budget their time in what is proving to be an ambitious year academically for them. Schoolwork is taking wayyyyy too long, and we need to find the "leaks" where their time is being frittered away. Part of it, I have observed, is that they just like talking to each other too much (a good thing during free time...not so good when there is a ton of schoolwork to be done!), so 5 minutes, 10 minutes, here and there, adds up. I'll be on the prowl looking for the rest, and figuring out what we can do to fix it!

Bryan and I have one more Saturday (this coming one) of knife sharpening at the Farmers' Market, and then he is DONE for the outdoor market season! We decided to work through September, rather than stopping at the end of August. Good, in that he's made a ton of money this month! But it's been really exhausting for him as he loses the whole day on Saturday (homework gets done Saturday eve and Sunday), especially since he's working at Kline Creek Farm on Fridays every other week. We will BOTH be glad when the Market season ends! (Markets go on through October...just not with our presence!) He will continue to sharpen for customers here at home, but we'll pick the days...it's by appointment only.

If you've read my series, "I Wish I Could Go To A Farm," I mentioned a place called Harvest Home Farm. We'll be heading up there in early October for a weekend visit...pray that it would be fruitful and a learning experience for Bryan!

May God Bless you this coming week!

Lori

Berry Days

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 21:29:00 -0500

(To join Friday Show n Tell with Canadagirl, click on the graphic above
or link to Canadagirl's blog from my "Friends" Section)

Thanks, Mary (aka CanadaGirl)...you inspired me to FINALLY get going on all my berry recipies and get them into the freezer! I started late in the evening, and finished last night around midnight. I pulled the baggies out of the freezer this morning to photograph them for today's post:

We'd picked TONS of blueberries while in Michigan, plus I had a lot of raspberries this year, so now I have:

Blueberry Freezer Jam...8 pints

1 Raspberry Pie Filling, and 1 Blueberry "Pudding" Topping for a layered dessert (I write either the baking instructions, if pie filling, or the name of the cookbook and page # if it's part of a longer dessert recipe, directly on the freezer bag)
2 Blueberry Pie Fillings

Scary how much sugar I doled out last night!!!!!!! But the wonderful thing is that now I have my pie fillings for Thanksgiving (blueberry pie, plus I'll make a pumpkin one, too) and for Christmas (Raspberry), as well as extra for when company is coming, and for a pot-luck dessert. The boys were especially excited about the jam...now when they eat their PB&J sandwiches at lunch, they can remember our trip to Michigan!

Thank you for stopping by...please leave me a note to let me know you were here, and so I can visit your blog, too!

God Bless,

Lori

Friday Show~n~Tell with CanadaGirl

Fri, 4 Sep 2009 10:23:00 -0500

(To Join the Tightwad Tuesdays and/or Friday Show~n~Tell with Canadagirl, click on the graphic above, or visit Canadagirl's blog)

*Note: I posted this as a Show-n-Tell Friday last week, but I think I'll use it as a Tightwad Tuesday tip, also! If you've already seen it, thanks for stopping by again! If not, enjoy!*

I was getting tired of going into the "school closet" for the teacher's guides and answer key binders that I use daily, and wanted them on my big desk in the school room (which feels really big now that my computer is up in the "craft" room!), but I didn't want to just lay them down on it. So I went to my local office supply store in search of a magazine holder. I wasn't sure how much those things would cost there, but I'd seen a set of 5 online for $11.99 + $8.15 shipping=$20.14.

My store didn't have anything like these, but as I was looking, I noticed the cardboard display boxes they had all their binders and folders in. One was already empty (back to school sales!), and with a quick little "consolidation of products" on my part, another was quickly emptied. I took the empties to the manager and asked if I could recycle these in my home, and she said "of course!" I got one narrow box and one wide box. A little bit of fabric that I had and some Contac paper that had been in the closet for over 5 years (leftover from lining some old drawers) and I think they turned out pretty cute! FREE was nice, too!

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Hope you have a wonderful day! Let me know if you stopped by!

God Bless,

Lori

Homeschooling Through High School...Heading for the Launch Pad!

Tue, 1 Sep 2009 17:46:00 -0500

I have the blessing of writing for the Front Porch of Homeschoolblogger.com this year. I write the "Homeschooling Through High School" column, which is published every Wednesday (click here to view the articles).

Normally, the Company Front Porch is the only place you'll find these articles. But the one I submitted today for tomorrow's edition represents my heartbeat and my passion when it comes to this time in the lives of my kids, and it is what I really desire to share with everyone through my blog here, Plans4You. So I decided to post it here today. I hope you enjoy it, and perhaps are blessed by it. Let me know you've stopped by!

WAKE UP, PEOPLE!!!

The Front Porch theme for this week is "Back To School." My 15 year old son and I were heading from the parking lot of our community college to the building in which he takes his German class, and I asked him if there was anything that he did to "gear up" for the fact that, this week, our school year begins full-on. The first thing he did was to look at the can of diet Pepsi-Max in his hand, raise it up slightly, and say, "WAKE UP, PEOPLE!!!"

If you do not see television at all, this would make no sense to you. But if you've seen it on occasion, as we have, you may be familiar with the humorous commercial which features multiple sleepyheads in need of a "jolt" to bring them to a state of consciousness.

Once we got serious, he said that, typically, he would play as hard as he could for the couple of days leading up to the Monday start! Play for him would be ultimate frisbee, volleyball, and practicing/playing with "Flightgear," the computer flying program he enjoys doing with a couple of serious aviation students in our church. This season, owing to a badly sprained ankle the beginning of August, he has been sitting with his foot up for a few weeks. So, he told me, the beginning of full-time school is a welcome relief from not having enough to do.

Telling...our high school students are not little kids any longer. They are young men and women; adults-in-training. I love to reflect upon the things my sons tell me...to "chew" on them for a while in order to extract the full "flavor and nutrition" from them. What have I "extracted" from this brief interlude?

1. "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth." (Genesis 1:27-28)

Our young people were created in the image of God and for the purpose of "having dominion" over the earth. If they are not engaged in such pursuits, they will feel a sense of restlessness. They will seek "something" to "dominate." Is it not best that we guide them in this quest?

Have your homeschool students grasped the link between the work of school that they are doing and the fulfillment of their created purpose and longings? Have you??? What about the student who fanicies himself a future engineer...and just isn't excited about the study of Government and Economics...how does he "gear up" for this course? How about the daughter who has to take freshman biology this year, but has NO interest in the inner workings of a dead frog?

Find the tie-in. Find that which will take the present situation, from which they feel "disconnected," and link it to the future that God is planting, whether subtley or overtly, in their hearts. Link them...connect them...help them to see it, to look for it. Teach them to pray for it, and pray with them!

From homemaker to engineer, everyone in this nation is going to experience a major change in the structure and scope of "power" of our government...and soon. As Christian adults, perhaps as married adults with children of their own, should Jesus' return be yet another generation away, our sons and daughters will have a pressing need to understand the basis of government (God's Word and Love), the various ideologies that have crept into our society and are being applied in this country and how to spot them in political rhetoric, proposed laws, etc. (I hope, by this age, that we do NOT fear having such discussions with out young adults, as we are not citizens of this world, but of Heaven). Understanding the past is the key to unlocking a "big picture" comprehension of the present and the future!

Does your daughter enjoy flowers? Food? She LIVES in biology! Would she, as a future wife and mother, like to have a vegetable garden to help provide nutritious, cost-efficient food for her family? A study of the science of life, created by God, will help her to understand what happens when we hybridize and genetically modify our seeds, our animals...our food.

Do our students comprehend that the entire universe operates via mathmatics??? Every single thing? That it is clearly important to God, as he used it to make everything run...so doing the best we can in math thanks Him for it, and honors Him? And that grumbling and complaining about it "disses" His created order?

We're back to school now, and we want our students excited, motivated, and engaged. Help your sons and daughters to formulate a vision of their futures, based upon their God-given gifts and the desires of their hearts...then show them how their homeschool studies, one course at a time, are moving them along the path to the fulfillment of those God-given desires. Each child is different, as God has created and gifted them. Delight in the process of "preparing them to launch!"

I like to compare these years to the Space Shuttles of NASA. If you've ever visited the Kennedy Space Center, or watched the preparation for a launch, you are familiar with "the crawler." The crawler is the enormous vehicle upon which a finished and ready rocket is placed and secured for the trip from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) to the launch pad. These rockets are heavy, and must be moved extremely carefully. Thus, the crawler moves at the incredible pace of 1 mile per hour, with the entire trip from VAB to launch pad taking between 5 and 6 hours. It is almost painful to watch, it's so slow! And yet, with every passing inch by every passing inch, the anticipatory excitement of the coming launch builds. If you've never seen the crawler in action, you can view it here in this one-minute-long video...(click the "stream" icon when you get to the intro page.)

Did you see what I saw? As the crawler inched along the path, the launch pad was clearly in view. "Atlantis, Welcome to Pad A" signs awaited it! The anticipated arrival was planned for, thought out, acted upon, celebrated! The folks operating the crawler could see it! They knew, while on that slow, arduous, heavy path, what the target was, and they had it in their sights, ever before them, urging them on through those long 6 hours of slow, slow progress.

I'm sure you can see what I'm getting at: can your homeschooled high school student see his or her launch pad? Do they understand that they are the Shuttle, preparing for launch? Can they see how the classes they are taking now are part of the things that make up the crawler, which is supporting them, transporting them, to the launch pad (Graduation Day)? Are the classes they are taking transporting them to the life that God has put in their hearts to pursue? Or are they on that crawler with no launch pad in sight???

Back to school? No idea where the launch pad is? Perhaps you need to delay the start by a week or two, and take an extra camping trip with your teen, or have some backyard picnics with the whole family if that is how things can work for you, to discuss the things of the heart...your teen's heart. Help them see the launch pad. They'll tolerate the crawler much better...and maybe even enjoy the ride.

May God Bless you and your family this week!

Lori

Lori Havens has been married to Kevin for 24 years. They live in Illinois with their two sons, Bryan (17) and Nathan (15), and dog Sunny (9). Lori enjoys writing, gardening, reading, and the outdoors. She is the author of "Should I Be A Nurse? A Journey of Self-Exploration for Those Considering a Career in Nursing" and "7 Essential Questions Every Future Nurse Must Ask." You can find her blogging at both Homeschool Blogger and Homestead Blogger .

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Let me know you stopped by today, so I can visit and say "hello!"

2 Things Today: A Riveting Video, and Something For Kids With Challenges...

Thu, 27 Aug 2009 07:00:00 -0500

1) A Riveting Video

This is so incredibly interesting to me...if you're tending to look "up" more these days, as in you're watching for the return of Christ, you may be interested in this, too. It's a little intense, probably not for little ones??? Enjoy, and keep watch!

2) Do Your Kids Have Challenges? Watch This!

As I was cleaning out the shelves and cabinets this week (getting organized for full start of school on Monday), I came across a CD that I had purchased at my state homeschool convention in June. The singer/songwriter's name is David Michael Carrillo...he is a pastor, speaker, and singer, and also carries the "title" of ADHD.

Neither of my sons are ADHD, but both have challenges in their lives, pretty big ones. Bryan could probably be "labeled" ADD (no hyperactivity)...it's what led us into homeschooling, initially; but the reality is that he is, as I like to put it, "wonderfully and wildly dyslexic." It leads to some information processing issues, and affects his communication somewhat. He has worked very hard to learn how to deal with this challenge, and has come a long way.

Nathan, my 16 y.o., was diagnosed at the tender age of 4 with type 1 diabetes. He has been insulin dependent since that day, and the challenges he faces are pretty darn big. I'll share more of his story in another post (or series of posts) later on...for now, just wanted to say that although neither of my sons deal with ADHD, as does DM Carrillo, his music has still touched me very deeply.

I wanted to share this song with you all...David Micheal wrote it about himself, and his mother. I hope it blesses you as much as it did us...especially if any of your children struggle with feeling "different" because of a special need.

May God Bless you today!

Lori

Please let me know if you've been by today!

Berries!

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 08:16:00 -0500

To join the fun, head on over to HeavenlyHomemakers.com by clicking on the graphic!

Last Tuesday I waxed philosophical about freedom...this week, I will wax gastronomical about blueberries! Oh, I'm am loving my blueberries! No, I do not grow them...not here in the dead suburban soil of the Chicago suburbs. These were picked during our annual church camping trip to Muskegon, Michigan. I was born and raised in Michigan...I do miss it. I know the economy there is a nightmare...but I miss the beauty of creation that is to be witnessed there...and eaten!

Psalm 24:1 "The earth is the LORD's, and the fullness thereof..."

Psalm 34:8 "Taste and see that the LORD is good..."

You can read all the science facts about blueberries you want to (I have)...they're a superfood! But the best is to hold one of these beautiful little berries in your fingers...marvel at it's smoothness, it's color, and then pop it in your mouth...bite in slowly, and enjoy it's sweetness (it has to be an in-season Michigan berry, grown outdoors in the acid, sandy soil--the grocery store berries are yucky)...then meditate upon Psalm 34:8. I'm grateful for such simple things as these!

One last thing...I've discovered blueberry coffee! Don't brush this one off...it smells like a fresh baked blueberry muffin with a steaming mug of java by it's side...and the taste is...mmmmmmmmmmmm! I buy mine from Gevalia.com (some things are worth the shipping), but my first taste was a Dunkin Donuts...just get a coffee of your choice, and ask for them to add blueberry syrup. This is a REAL treat, and it's not so sticky sweet, like other syrups!

God Bless you, please leave a comment so I know you're stopping by for this MEME!

Lori